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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. staff — a stick
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. staff — employees
  5. spell — letters
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. staff — employees
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bark — to shout
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. hand — help
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. toast — bread
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. spell — magic
  24. bark — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com